Oil Industry Experts See Huge Opportunities At Samsung’s Welding Facility
Oil Industry experts have seen some opportunities that is rapidly advancing Nigeria on its path towards an industrial economy.
Some of the experts who spoke at a Webinar conference, themed, “Advancing Nigeria’s Industrial Economy” Private Sector Intervention” at the weekend, called for appropriate framework that will attract more foreign investments in the country.
This they said will position Nigeria as the main manufacturing hub for the West African region. According to Engr. Edet Okon, a petroleum and construction engineer, one of the biggest infrastructure facility in the country, the Samsung’s Welding Centre is now empowering new generation of Nigerians.
Okon, said this this industrial growth being inspired by the infrastructure is supported by a young population who are rapidly acquiring skills in order to meet the demands of industrialization. As growing demand for workers in the manufacturing industries increases, certain skills are commonly sought after by employers.
He stated that the Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria (SHIN), the local subsidiary of leading Korean shipbuilder, Samsung Heavy Industries, has consistently been providing these skills to a young generation of Nigerians. LEADERSHIP reports that SHIN operates the Lagos-based SHI-MCI yard, Africa’s leading integration and fabrication shipyard which facilitated the construction of vessels for the oil and gas industry, including the Egina FPSO, the world’s largest floating production storage and offloading vessel now active in the Egina oil field.
In order to produce high-quality work to international specifications, SHIN recognized the need to invest in the training of its employees in valuable skills such as welding which are key to economies based on manufacturing.
In his view, Obiora Ofodeme, a geologist said that despite the high demand for welding skills by Nigerian companies, there are few local training schools and that Nigeria’s need for welders is also driven by the ever increasing demand for energy.
“Nigeria is a currently a major energy producer and will continue to increase its production in the coming years. This is also attracting increased investment in local infrastructure for the local oil and gas industry. It is strategically important for Nigeria to match the skills of its population to the future needs of the Nigerian economy. The oil and gas industry is a significant user of steel and other metals and will be increasingly supplied by local providers. Only by training welders now will there be enough welders for industries such as shipbuilding, construction and manufacturing.” Ofodeme observed.
He noted that demographically, Nigeria has one of the world’s youngest populations which presents a competitive advantage, but added that a young country also needs education to drive economic growth.
Other speakers at the conference recognized the human potential of Nigeria, which is a major attraction for SHIN establishing a Welding Qualification Centre (WQC) in Tarkwa Bay, Lagos.
As the provider of Nigeria’s only international welding certification, SHIN believes in nurturing home-grown talent in order to power Africa’s industrial future. Accredited by the International Institute of Welding (IIW) as an “Approved Training Body”, the WQC offers certified courses in international fillet, plate and tubular welding. Since it was established 530 students have graduated from the WQC as qualified welders.
Established in order to support SHIN’s shipbuilding projects, the WQC is now an ongoing asset to Nigeria’s vocational training system. The centre has facilitated the transfer of Korean knowledge and skills to Nigerian students.
Korea has been a leading shipbuilder for decades and has achieved economic success by harnessing manufacturing as a platform to support the growth of more developed industries.
With the help of Korean and Nigerian trainers, the WQC strives to deliver international welding qualifications to students to they can work on projects for international clients.
One of the beneficiaries of the training initiative, Godwin Oghenegueke, who has inspired many young Nigerians, at the conference shared his experiences being one of the first participants in SHIN’s free welding training courses.
According to Godwin, he initially started his career working at the SHI-MCI yard as a cleaner but went on to become a certified welder.
He was complimentary of the open-minded nature of the programme saying, “some people came in as helpers and now they are assistant managers, scaffolders, welders, operators or riggers.”
The cost of education can be a barrier to many as Godwin noted, “I would not have been able to afford this training without Samsung’s help. I know of many lives which improved thanks to the project. Samsung has equipped my life with so many skills. Everything about me has changed.”
Besides Godwin, Chinonye Okonkwo has also been an inspiration as one of the first certified female international welding specialists from Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria’s training program. She is now a welding training coordinator at SHI MCI yard, Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria.
The international culture of SHIN is composed of many different nationalities. Nigerian WQC welding trainer, Hadisa Olayinka shared his experience of working alongside Korean colleagues. The Korean WQC supervisors are different he says, because in a shipyard work must be closely monitored – not just for efficiency but also for safety reasons.
For this reason it’s important to ensure people are motivated to do their best and bring the right “attitude towards the job”.
Olayinka continued by saying that, “they don’t want to simply use you, they want to know about your personal life and how they can help make an impact.”
SHIN’s WQC is a concrete example of how educational investment can create success stories like Godwin’s and Chinonye’s as more young people benefit from Nigeria’s evolution into a truly sophisticated regional manufacturing hub.